Down by the Boat Dock
by thecolorgrey
Summary: Reid's in trouble. Morgan does the best friend thing. Will eventually be Morgan/Reid slash. You've been warned.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Down by the Boat Dock

**Author: **The Color Grey

**Summary: **Reid's in trouble. Morgan does the best friend thing.

**Warning: **This will be SLASH. You've been warned. If you're here to send flames, then GTFO. May or may not get graphic in the future, I haven't decided yet.

**Disclaimer:** Criminal Minds isn't mine, I'm just playing. I promise to dust them off and put them back on the shelf when I'm done.

**A/N: **Prepare for irregular updates and bad writing. This is un-Beta'd so all mistakes are my own. Hope you enjoy!

**Down by the Boat Dock**

**"I am an ocean, I am the sea**

**There is a world inside of me**

**Lost in the abyss, drowned in the deep**

**No set of lungs could salvage me**

**Save yourself, save your breath**

**The tides too strong, you'll catch your death**

**So breathe for me, just breathe"**

- Crucify Me, Bring Me The Horizon

Nico Bonham leveled the gun in the palm of his hand with Reid's head and in that moment, he knew he had really screwed up this time. Reid swallowed down his panic and wished desperately he had told someone, anyone where he had gone. The distant sound of a seagull rang through the air and Nico's mouth twitched. "Move," Nico demanded with a wave of his gun. Reid stepped back a few steps down the wooden boat dock, his eyes never leaving the gun pointed at his head.

As they approached the end of the dock, Nico gestured. "Sit." Reid swallowed hard, looking all around for any signs of life. "Sit!" Nico repeated, tugging his arm until Reid obeyed, plopping down at the end of the dock beside a pile of stuff he'd barely noticed before. Nico crouched down in front of him, pulling out a pair of handcuffs. Reid tried to back away, but ran into a buoy and a pile of rusted chains behind him. Nico held his gun in one hand and snapped a bracelet on one of Reid's thin wrists. Reid pulled his other hand as far away as possible to keep him from binding his wrists together, but Nico didn't even try to get to his other hand, unexpectedly latching the other end on a large concrete block with a metal ring in it.

Stunned, Reid pulled, but the ring hadn't rusted enough and held fast.

"Great, so now you've got me where you want me," he said, trying to force sarcasm into his words even as panic welled inside him.

Nico snorted, "Not quite."

Nico shifted around and then gave the concrete block a push towards to edge of the dock. Reid's eyes widened as he realized his plan was to push it over the edge into the water.

"No! You can't do this! I-I'm important to the government!" he stuttered. "They won't let you get away! They'll find you!"

Nico paused. "Oh, yeah? And where are they now? 'Cause I don't see anyone here to help you." Nico waved his armed hand around to gesture to the abandon boat dock. He pushed a bit further. "You're… all… _alone_."

"Stop it! Stop!" Reid pleaded. As the block neared the edge, teetering, he screamed as loud as he could. "Help! Someone help…"

Before he could get the last word out, he felt himself jerk over to the side. He hit the water before he could get a breath and sank beneath the surface, his heart racing with adrenaline. Once he righted himself he tried to swim towards the surface, but the block was too heavy. Despite his kicking, it dragged him down to the bottom. The water was shallow enough he could see the filtering sunlight above him. Not even eight feet separated him from life-giving air, but his lungs burned, already desperate for oxygen.

A wave of claustrophobia overwhelmed his—no one would find him. The chilling thought hit him all at once. Hotch, Morgan, JJ, Garcia… Prentiss… Rossi… His body would never be located. They'd never know what happened to him, never be able to put him to rest.

Then there was a splash above him—someone in the water looking… Looking for him.

He waved his free hand and felt the person grab it. They pulled but nothing happened—there wasn't enough leverage to pull Reid and the anchoring block from the water.

The shape came closer and Reid could make out a face: Morgan.

Knowing he couldn't see down by the murky bottom, Reid grabbed Morgan's hand and led it down to feel the cuffs and the block.

With a rush of bubbles, Morgan was gone, up and out of the water.

Reid watched him go, panicking all over again.

Morgan had come, but Morgan hadn't been able to save him.

No one could save him.

He felt lightheaded, the cold water stealing the last sensations from him as he began to black out. There was another splash above him and Morgan was back. He swam up to Reid and Reid looked at him mournfully, trying to forgive him with his eyes, thank him for caring and trying. Morgan grabbed him and moved close, bringing their mouths together. Forcing Reid's open, Morgan blew air into his lungs. Reid choked a little, swallowing some water, but the tiny bit of air helped.

Morgan surfaced again and was back down to Reid in a matter of seconds, bringing their mouths together for another air transfer. The second time was easier and by a third time, Reid's head had cleared up enough for him to realize that Morgan's hands at his wrist meant something.

He had a key.

It took interminable seconds, Morgan working without sight, but finally the cuff came loose and Morgan swam him up to the surface. Reid came up sputtering and coughing, gulping for air and Morgan held him up, treading water for both of them until they could swim around to the side of the dock with a ladder they could climb back up.

On top of the dock, Reid staggered, but Morgan was there to steady him. Reid looked up at him, fragile and shaken, unable to speak. Morgan met his gaze and in one fluid movement, took Reid and enveloped him in his arms. Reid melted against him, in both parts that his muscles felt like jelly and the safe feeling Morgan had surrounded him in.

Sirens squealed and black and white police cars screeched up to the dock area. Morgan pulled him close, crushing him to his chest in a possessive embrace born out of fear of loss. "It's over," he murmured softly. "It's all over."

Reid turned his face away from the dead body of Nico lying on the dock, and buried it into Morgan's chest. They stood dripping wet on the dock, knowing the police and their team would have questions yet in that moment not caring about anything but the connection between them— unbreakable.


	2. Chapter 2

Reid leaned heavily against the police cruiser, watching as the last remnants of dusk turned into night. The debrief had been grueling and no one seemed to care he'd just almost died. Due to protocol and personal connections, his team hadn't been allowed to be present when the lead officer had questioned him. And the officer was a classic narcissist with the whole 'I'd rather be golfing' attitude.

He'd refused to go back to the FBI offices after they'd separated him from Morgan for questioning and to their credit, the local cops refused to let him go, claiming—rightly so—he was a material witness in a case they had jurisdiction over: Spencer Reid's attempted murder. Just the words gave him heart-pounding flashbacks.

Instead, they drove him over to the smaller police station that was nearby. A compassionate officer had managed to pull him aside and get him some sweats to change into. He'd arranged for Reid to take a shower in the locker room and he took his time trying to scrub away the sickly algae infused water from his body. Reid had asked him to look after Morgan as well and had gone into the debrief at least knowing Morgan wasn't sopping wet and miserable whenever they were questioning him.

At some point they had put food in front of him, but all he remembered was asking them to make sure they fed Morgan as well. When they told him Morgan had been released, he felt a sense of relief followed by a twang of loneliness. He'd grown so accustomed to Morgan by his side that it felt wrong to go through all of this without him.

Some hours later, Reid found himself sitting in one of the chairs in the BAU conference room with his teammates seated around him. He avoided looking at their concerned eyes as he finished telling his story.

"So once we surfaced, Morgan pulled me over to a ladder on the side of the dock so we could climb out. I could hear sirens and then the police officers showed up. After they separated us, they took us to the police station for questioning."

"What happened to Bonham?" JJ asked and Reid met her deep blue eyes for a millisecond before looking back down at both of her hands covering one of his on the table top.

"Morgan shot him, didn't he?" Rossi prompted from the other side of the table.

Reid nodded. "He didn't mean to kill him. He was running and Nico shot at him first. He fired back and… Well, I guess Morgan's a good shot even under fire."

"Damn straight," Garcia agreed, her hands covering the hand JJ wasn't holding. "Good Lord, if my handsome chocolate man hadn't shown up…"

"I'm fine, Garcia," he insisted for the umpteenth time. He could feel the knowing eyes of Hotch and Rossi when he turned to the distressed blonde. He gently pulled his hands out of the two girls' hands and gestured at his chest. "See? Nothings broken, I'm fine."

"I know but…" Garcia sniffled and wiped at her eyes under her aqua colored classes. Reid bit the inside of his cheek and looked over at the other members of his team, feeling yet again the slight twinge of loneliness that appeared whenever Morgan wasn't around.

Wait.

"Where's Morgan?" Reid asked.

"He had to clear up a few things down at the station," Hotch spoke up. "Technically, Nico Bonham's case wasn't even in our jurisdiction and Morgan killed him—there's a lot of paperwork to be done about that."

Reid's face reddened and he nodded slowly.

"Speak of the devil…" Rossi murmured and Reid followed his eyes through the window to see Morgan's tense statue making his way through to bullpen. He was obviously not in a good mood and Reid couldn't blame him, those police reports could be a bitch.

"C'mon, Reid," was the first thing he said when he made it to the conference room. "I'm taking you home."

Reid smiled gratefully at him, "Finally."

* * *

"You're going the wrong way," Reid said when he realized which way they were driving.

"I know," Morgan said. "We're gonna stay at my place."

"Oh?"

"In case you haven't noticed, genius, you haven't stopped shaking since we left the BAU," Morgan's tone was soft, not teasing. Reid frowned and tried to hold his body still.

"That wasn't what I was trying to get to," Morgan chuckled at Reid's attempt to become a statue.

Reid puffed out a breath of air and slumped in the leather seat of the SUV. "Thank you" he said softly. "You know… for saving my life."

Morgan put a comforting hand on Reid's knee. "Anytime. Seriously, you can count on me."

Reid closed his eyes briefly once and the moment on the dock displayed itself behind his eyes. The emotion, the certainty in Morgan's eyes as he helped Reid climb unsteadily up the ladder…

"I can do that," he said.

"The Bureau's got counselors," Morgan suggested after a few moments silence. "I think it would be good if you tried to talk to them."

Rolling his eyes, Reid replied with a snip, "I know the Bureau has counselors."

Morgan didn't speak again and the ride was silent for the rest of the way to his house.

Reid's only ever been to Morgan's house once on one of the rare cook-outs the team has, and Reid had been slightly impressed with the living establishments Morgan had. It wasn't anything too flashy—just a modest two-story home with a nice backyard and Jacuzzi, but that was an amazing difference compared to the crap apartment Reid was accustomed to.

Morgan pulled into the driveway and turned off the car and exited the SUV, Reid mirroring his movements. He stumbled a bit when his feet hit the concrete but Morgan had suddenly materialized right next to him to steady him. It took a while, but finally Reid managed to get his feet back where they could work properly.

"You must be exhausted," Morgan said gently. "We should get you into bed. Did you eat?"

"Yeah," Reid muttered, letting Morgan lead his up the front steps. "They gave me something so I'm good. But I could sleep for a week."

"Sorry, can't offer you a week," Morgan said apologetically. "Strauss gave you a four-day leave and I decided to take some time off to… recuperate." When Reid looked at him, surprised, Morgan continued. "You almost died. If that isn't a time for a friend then… I don't know what is."

Reid nodded in understanding. "I just can't believe the whole team didn't try for some time off, you know how they get."

"They wanted to, trust me," Morgan explained, "but I told them not to. Said you needed to rest and that wasn't going to happen with them going nuts—which you know they would."

Reid leaned a little more heavily against Morgan. "I am tired. But…"

"Don't worry," Morgan interrupted. "The windows are already all open."

Reid gazed up at him and smiled his gratitude. "Thank you… For everything…"

Morgan grinned and steered them towards the staircase. "Come on. Let's get you upstairs and tucked into bed."

"Are you going to stay?" Reid asked.

"Wild horses couldn't tear me away," he promised.

"I'd like to see wild horses try to get past your security," Reid joked, his words slurring slightly from weariness.

Morgan let out a choked off cough of laughter. "Okay, didn't see that coming. If you can joke like that after the day you've had…"

"Mmm…" he mumbled tiredly.

Morgan opened the door to the master bedroom and beckoned Reid inside. Reid toed off his shoes and slipped between the sheets, letting the cool fabric soothe him as the faint sounds of a distant owl floated through the windows.

"You coming?" he asked, a bit of nervousness in his voice.

"I'm not leaving," Morgan assured him and kicked off his own shoes and slid in next to Reid. "Try to sleep."

Before Reid drifted off, he felt Morgan press a soft kiss to his forehead. Content, he fell asleep, feeling safe once more.


	3. Chapter 3

Reid bolted awake, gasping for air, and all but ran for the nearest window.

Morgan was right behind him. "What's wrong? What is it?"

"Air! Need air!" he cried, drawing in great gulps. "Can't... Get... Enough..." Dizzy, he faltered, too lightheaded to stay up.

"Let me get you out on the balcony." Morgan half led, half carried him to the other exterior wall and opened the French door there. Reid broke free of his grasp and pushed his way out onto the small balcony, sucking in the brisk night air desperately. "It's okay, it's okay..." Morgan soothed, keeping enough distance to not crowd him, but maintaining a calming hand on his back the whole time.

"Please tell me it won't always be like this," Reid said, near hysterical. "I can't live like this. It has to get better. I can't go to sleep every night thinking I'm going to suffocate, I'm going to drown..."

"It won't always be like this," Morgan assured him. "Give it time. For now, just breathe. We can stay out here all night if that's what you need."

Reid shivered as the chill of the night air finally got to him.

"Cold..."

"Let me go get you a blanket." Before Morgan could leave, Reid grabbed his arm.

"Don't go... I don't want to be alone."

Morgan nodded in understanding. "Then let me see what I can do to keep you warm."

He sat down behind Reid and pulled him down to sit as well. He wrapped himself loosely around Reid's small frame, protecting him from the elements.

"Warm enough?" he asked, his breath ghosting over Reid's ear.

Reid settled back into the secure circle of his arms. "I'm good."

The next time he woke he was still in Morgan's arms, but back in bed. Dawn was cresting over the harbor and Morgan was sleeping soundly, his dark lashes fanned out over his cheeks. Reid took a moment to look down at his face, smiled, then settled back in to sleep, no longer troubled at being indoors.

* * *

As Reid's eyes fluttered open against the bright sunlight he heard a gravelly voice nearby.

"Morning, sleepyhead."

He stretched, yawning himself awake, and turned towards the voice. "Morning to you too, Lashes."

"So, I have a nickname now?" Morgan snickered.

"Apparently." Reid smirked. He glanced around for a clock. "What time is it?"

"Almost noon. We slept a really freaking long time. You ready to get up?"

Reid nestled back down into the covers and into Morgan's arms. "Do I have to? I mean, I kind of don't want to leave this bed... Well, ever. Facing the world?" His expression darkened for a moment. "Not really ready for it."

"We can stay here all day if you want," Morgan said cordially. "The home theater in my den is networked so we can call up any movie on the hard drive to any TV."

"I'd like that," Reid said shyly. "But mostly I just want to be here with you." His cheeks reddened in embarrassment. "I feel safe with you."

Morgan grew pensive; his fingers brushing along Reid's slightly stubbled jaw, looking almost conflicted with his thoughts. "Reid- Spencer, you know this... This isn't because of what happened to you. God, I'm not even sure what I'm saying..."

"I understand," Reid reassured him. "I mean… we're—ah… Crap." He let out a frustrated huff of air. "Now who's having a hard time expressing themselves?"

"Maybe we need less talk."

Reid let out a little chuckle. "And more movies?"

Morgan laughed, filling the room with the wonderfully relaxed sound.

"Coming right up!"

And they spent the day lounging around, eating popcorn and watching really bad movies from the 80's. Reid doesn't remember falling asleep on Morgan's couch, but next thing he knows, Morgan is gently shaking his shoulder to awake him.

"Hey, wake up."

Reid cracked open his eyes and froze when he saw how close Morgan's face was to his. Morgan seemed to have this revelation the same time as him and backed up a couple inches. Reid's mouth was suddenly dry and neither of them made any move to talk as a sense of awkwardness fell over them.

"Ah… is coffee involved? 'Cause I'm not getting up if it isn't," he said, trying to add some levity to the situation.

Morgan blinked and gave a slightly shaky half-smile. "I, uh, I'll go put some on if that's what you want. The bathroom is down the hall, second door, if you wanna take a shower an' clean up."

Reid blinked slowly and then nodded. "Ye-…" The words caught in his throat and he gave a little cough to hide it and then tried again. "Yeah."

Morgan nodded and got up from his crouched position by the couch to go to the kitchen. Reid watched him go, his emotions seeming to swirl around inside of him and then getting twisted into a tight, ugly knot.

Reid sighed and pushed himself up off the couch and made his way to the bathroom. He quickly peeled off the sweats and t-shirt the police station had provided him with and scrubbed himself red, still feeling the slight impression of Morgan's eyes on him.

He turned off the water and realized with dread that he didn't have any clean clothes to put on. Reid shook out his hair and pulled the shower curtain open, seeing the neatly folded clothes on the corner of the sink. He felt a small smile pull at his lips and he quickly dressed, feeling a rush of… something when he put on _Morgan's _boxers and _Morgan's _jeans and _Morgan's _t-shirt that had once been on _Morgan's _body.

Morgan's body.

He shivered and opened the bathroom door, a gust of steam following him out like the mist of smoke that appears whenever a magician gives his final act. The sweet smell of coffee and bacon wafted out to him and he followed his nose out to the kitchen. He was greeted with the sight of a casual jean-and-t-shirt clad Morgan facing the stove where the wonderful smell of cooked pork and coffee was coming from.

"I hope you have sugar."

Morgan jumped and whirled around, tongs in hand, raised like some kind of knife and Reid had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. Morgan blinked a few times and then let out a breathy laugh, shaking his head at his own fretfulness.

"You shouldn't sneak up on me like that," he said, eyes lingering on Reid's clothes.

Reid shifted under his gaze and pulled at the hem of the shirt. Morgan's eyes snapped up to met Reid's eyes and smiled.

"I'm glad they fit, they're the smallest things I own. That shirt was actually mine from high school," he told him.

Reid blinked and looked at the design on the navy colored shirt for the first time. 'Chicago or Bust!' was printed in black block letters with a portrait of an eagle behind it, claws out ready to strike. He felt the same rush he felt back in the bathroom when he first put the clothes on.

"Oh… cool," he said, because he couldn't think of anything else to say.

Morgan gave a half smile that made Reid's inside turn to Jell-O, and then turned back to the stove. "Why don't you have a seat and I'll get you somethin' to eat."

Reid swallowed against his newly dry throat and walked over to the small table in the middle of the kitchen. _Great, so now you've got me where you want me. _He froze when his words from before echoed through his head and he half expected Morgan to hear them too.

He swallowed again and forced himself to relax into the wooden chair.

_Not quite. _

* * *

**A/N: **Thanks for the reviews, guys!


	4. Chapter 4

Reid fiddled with a frayed string on the end of his t-shirt.

_Morgan's _t-shirt.

At the mention of the name, Reid's thoughts immediately flew to the dark man standing not even five feet away. This wasn't an odd occurrence—Morgan cooking breakfast for Reid. There was always that one case, that one Unsub, that one victim, that pushed them a little too far than they were meant and, even if they didn't want to admit it, the only people who understood—only people they could _talk _to—were each other.

Sure, Hotch has Jack and that Beth woman, JJ has Will and Henry, Garcia has Kevin, Morgan has his mom and sisters, Emily has her mother and a few friends, Rossi has… whoever Rossi's have (he's seen Rossi spending more time with Strauss, even as much as that thought grosses him out), and he has his mom. But _they _didn't know. They still don't know, and they _never will_. It was like they lived in a box filled with humanities most evil nightmares while everyone stood on the outside, only able to see and not touch, not understand.

_Never _understand.

"_Spencer!_"

Reid blinked, looking up from the string, and realized that Morgan has been calling his name for some time now. "What?"

Morgan searched his face, frowning. "You okay?"

"I'm fine."

"Right," he huffed. Morgan placed a plate in front of him and a wave of nausea rolled through him when the sickly sweet smell of coffee and the greasy smell of bacon assaulted his nostrils. Morgan made a plate of his own and settled into the chair across the small table. He picked up a piece of bacon, grease shining in the light, and popped it in his mouth.

Reid wrinkled his nose and looked down at his own plate in disgust. Had he wanted to eat this not even ten minutes ago? He ignored the cooked animal flesh and took a sip of his coffee, nearly gagging when the strong sugary liquid practically burned the back his throat.

Morgan looked up from his bacon. "I didn't put enough sugar in it, did I? Damn. And I was pretty sure I made it just how you like it!" He snorted a laugh. "Sugar with a pinch of coffee, am I right?"

His laughter sounded fake and his smile looked plastic—like one of those creepy talk-with-me Barbie dolls—and Reid had to force a smile for his efforts. "The coffee is fine. I'm just… just not really hungry right now."

Morgan's face fell a fraction, and Reid inwardly flinched, before a look of suspicion crossed Morgan's face. "You're sure? I made it for you."

"Yeah… It's just—I'm… just not… hungry?" It sounded pathetic even in his own ears. Pathetic and fake and weak and stupid.

_Nico crouched down in front of him, pulling out a pair of handcuffs. _

Morgan said something and Reid shook his head. "Huh?"

"I said, is it your stomach? Are you sick? Do we need to go to the hospital?" Morgan frowned, his eyes clouding with concern. "I knew we shoulda had you checked out back at the dock by that medic."

_Reid stepped back a few steps down the wooden boat dock, his eyes never leaving the gun pointed at his head._

Reid shook his head and rubbed his eyes. "Nothing. Look, this is nice, what you're doing for me and everything, but…" He grit his teeth, he couldn't believe he was going to say this. "I need some time, you know? To… heal and… recuperate and whatnot." _I just want to be left alone. _

_"Oh, yeah? And where are they now? 'Cause I don't see anyone here to help you."_

Morgan's eyebrows rose. "Right."

"Yes."

Shifting around, Morgan pushed his now half-finished plate off to the side and leaned forward on his elbows. Reid averted his eyes to the brown spot of something—dried coffee, maybe?—stuck to the counter.

"Reid."

He wishes he could just cut open his head, scrape the evil things away, and then have Morgan patch him back up, nursing him back to be the person he never was. But he can't do that- not now, not ever. And why can't Morgan just see that he can't just be fixed?

Reid sighed tiredly, causing frown lines to appear on Morgan's forehead. "I… really appreciate what you're doing for me and everything, but I just want to be alone right now."

The creases didn't disappear from Morgan's face- actually, they seemed to deepen. They sat there staring at each other for a few seconds until Reid got annoyed with the lines distorting his friend's face. He leaned forward and pressed his thumb against Morgan's forehead and smoothed the creases of worry away. Satisfied when they were gone, Reid pulled away his hand, only realizing how close they had become. He could feel Morgan's breath on his face, smell coffee and bacon with each little puff of air.

"I should probably be going now," Reid said somewhat breathlessly.

Morgan's eyes slid from Reid's and down to his throat, up to his lips, and the up to his eyes again before looking away. "Maybe it would be best if you tried to get back to normal life as soon as possible," he said softly.

Reid blinked in surprise. Well _that _wasn't expected, he though Morgan would protest—possible curse and yell a few times—but this… this isn't it.

"Oh." Reid said. "Well… okay then."

"Okay."

"Yes."

An awkward silence settled over them that—what was the phrase? So thick you could cut it with a knife? Yeah, that seemed about right. The air in the room was so thick that it sucked up all of the oxygen, straining his lungs, and making it hard to breathe.

Morgan was looking everywhere around the kitchen except Reid, his eyes flittering between the white linoleum and the sky blue walls. Reid picked mindlessly at the end of his—_Morgan's_—shirt, starting to get restless in the small kitchen. It was almost like those corny movies where the camera switches between the main character and the room they were in, slowly showing it shrinking and shrinking. Except that this isn't a movie, and Reid's could almost swear that the walls were closing in.

A faint echoing sound pulsed through Reid's mind, gradually getting louder. Soon enough, Reid realized it was the sound of waves hitting against a dock. Each pulse of the waves sent a throb of pain in his mind and the last thing he sees is Morgan's eyes before everything goes black.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **Yes, I know I'm a terrible person. But hey, it only took me 4 months to update.

* * *

He woke with a start and tried automatically to cringe backwards but he was already jammed tightly into a corner, walls pressing against his shoulders. His feet skidded against the carpet, and his whole body ached, his head throbbing and his eyes gritty and stinging in the dazzling sunlit room. The space was crowded with furniture, almost claustrophobic despite the uncovered window; it was also entirely foreign. Morgan must've moved him because he was now a couple feet away from the table, leaning up against the two walls that joined at where the hallway led off to the bedroom.

He looked around desperately for Morgan but was only met with an empty kitchen. Reid leaned his head back against the wall, shutting his eyes against the glare and trying to breath deeply without collapsing into sobs.

Reid's feet were going numb. He wiggled his toes and then pushed himself stiffly to his feet, bracing his hands against the walls on either side.

"Hey. Hey, hey!"

Morgan appeared around the corner holding a blanket and pillow. He immediately dropped the things in his hands and rushed to Reid's side, slipping an arm around his waist to keep him from toppling over. Morgan started to slowly walk them towards the couch in the living room. His feet didn't seem to want to listen to what his brain was telling him to do so his feet slipped a few times, but Morgan was always right there to keep him from falling.

"Here, here. Careful now," Morgan was murmuring as he gently led Reid to sit on the couch. He wanted to open his mouth to say something to comfort him, but he was too weak to do anything but grunt and sigh.

Once Morgan had him set up in a position where he wouldn't fall over, Morgan moved over to crouch at Reid's knees.

"Are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?"

"Nnngh."

Well, it's not the most intelligent thing that ever came out of his mouth, but he thinks Morgan found the hidden 'no' inside.

"Okay, okay," Morgan said. He looked almost frantic, his hands running restlessly over his thighs. Not to mention he wouldn't stop repeating things.

Reid summoned up whatever scraps of strength was left in him and said, "Sleep."

"Sleep," Morgan repeated mechanically, not even processing the word. Then his eyes widened. "Oh! Sleep. Yeah. Uh, hold on."

Then Morgan was gone, went to retrieve the pillow and blanket he had abandon back at the hallway.

"'m just so tired all the time," Reid murmured when Morgan returned.

Morgan lifted him up gently to slide the pillow behind him. "You might've caught something from the water," he said distractedly and tucked the blanket around him. The smell of the detergent from the blanket made Reid's nose twitch, but he held back the urge to sneeze.

Morgan looked much calmer than a few minutes ago. He gave Reid a crooked smile, but Reid could still see the nervousness lurking below. His drowsiness tugged at his psyche again and he snuggled deeper down into the cushions.

Morgan stayed with him until he fell asleep.

* * *

Reid woke and slept and woke, tangled in Morgan's blanket and sleep holding him down like a smothering weight. The light shifted each time he struggled up to consciousness. He was occasionally lucid enough to wonder if he was under the water again- or still.

Eventually he woke in a dim gray light, sweaty but clear-headed, and had to piss too badly to consider rolling over and going back to sleep. Morgan was nowhere to be seen. Reid hesitated only for a deep breath before forcing himself up. His whole body felt weird from sleeping for so long and he felt a bit dizzy.

He shuffled over to the window in the living room and looked out, blinking in brighter light. He was looking down on the roof of a shed, and off to a side yard where he saw Morgan's dog lazily sprawled out in the fading sunlight. The glass of the window was cool against his forehead and Reid focused on that, shifting from foot to foot as pins and needles stabbed up his legs.

When he could walk, he turned away and headed towards the bathroom. He saw that the clothes Morgan was wearing before were crumbled in the corner by the shower, and that the shower curtain was still a little wet. Reid did what he had to do, leaving the door open. _To breathe through, _he thought, though he knew perfectly well that the door wouldn't keep air in or out. He washed his hands, wiping them quickly on his jeans and then realizing with a start that he was still in Morgan's clothes. He stood frozen for a moment.

_It's just clothes, _he told himself and turned to leave the bathroom, but not before catching a glimpse of himself in the mirror. His Chicago shirt was rumpled as were his jeans and his hair looked like he just stuck his finger in an electrical socket.

He escaped back out into the hall. He stood for a minute listening for any sounds to show Morgan was here. He didn't hear anything. Reid rubbed his eyes, and his hands came back wet. He wiped them on his pants and told himself it was just strange to be alone.

"Morgan?" he called out even though he knew he was alone in the house.

Reid sighed and walked back out to the kitchen. Everything was cleaned, the only evidence of this mornings breakfast being a plate Morgan hadn't put away still in the drying rack beside the sink. He craned his neck to look for a clock and found one on the stove.

9:46 P.M.

Where in the world would Morgan be at this time? Reid looked around the kitchen for something Morgan might have left for him and spotted a piece of paper hanging on the fridge with a magnet.

_Went to get dinner. Be back soon. _

Reid wrinked his nose at the thought of trying to force something down his throat again. But he had to eat sometime, right?


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **I literally rewrote this chapter five times so I'm really sorry if it turned out choppy or if some parts don't make sense because I was moving things around a lot. I just didn't want to take another four months to update lol

* * *

A knock came from the door and Reid knew it was Morgan with the food.

"If it's seafood, I'm going to punch you in the face," Reid said as he unlocked the door.

He was met with Morgan's grinning face and groaned. "It is seafood, isn't it?"

"No," Morgan laughed. "I was just trying to imagine you punching me in the face."

Reid ignored him and took the pizza box from Morgan's hands. "What'd you get?"

"Ham and pineapple. You're favorite."

They settled on the couch with the box of pizza sitting on the coffee table and Morgan easily polished off four pieces by the time Reid forced one down. They were starting on their third episode of _Pawn Stars _when Morgan asked him if he was feeling better.

"Yeah," he said. It wasn't totally a lie, the some twelve hours of dead sleep did make him feel better. But every now and then he would still get that tightening in his chest and he would sit absolutely still until Morgan moved or said something that would remind him that he's _here _and that he's _alive. _

"Good," Morgan grinned at him and Reid smiled back. Morgan jerked his chin in the direction of the crust left over from Reid's piece of pizza on his plate. "You want more? There's still half a pizza in there. Or are you feeling sick?"

The one piece he did eat was already churning in his stomach and he didn't think he could handle another. So he gave Morgan a shrug and turned back to the TV. "I think I'm good. I actually ate some crackers while you were gone so it wasn't like I was starving." Okay. Total lie. But if he told Morgan he was feeling sick, he would probably haul him up and drag him to the hospital and Reid really didn't think he could handle being out of the safety of the house right now.

Morgan seemed to believe it and nodded. "Okay. We can just have the leftovers tomorrow."

They sat through five more episodes of _Pawn Stars _until they changed into Paid Programming. Reid stretched out his legs and turned to see Morgan passed out, head lolling against the back of the couch. He knew he was going to have a bad crick in his neck when he wakes up if he sleeps the whole night like that.

"Hey," Reid nudged him with his foot. "Go to bed."

Morgan groaned and pulled his feet up close to his chest and then continued on snoring. Reid laughed softly, Morgan looked absolutely ridiculous trying to fit his big frame on the small couch and try to be comfortable.

He nudged him harder with his foot. "Get up."

Morgan didn't even respond. Reid rolled his eyes and stood up. "Don't come crying to me tomorrow when you can't move you're head," he told him and walked to the bedroom.

* * *

At some point, Reid woke up in daylight. He really needed to stop sleeping so much. He rolled over in the bed and looked over toward the window to find the curtains half-open, sunlight shining through. Morgan was sitting in one of the chairs with his feet propped on the end of the bed, drinking coffee and watching him.

Reid thought drearily that Morgan must be getting bored sitting around the house for the past three days. _Three days. _He's going back into work tomorrow. He sighed and hugged the comforter close to his chest. "So... what're we going to do today?"

Morgan shrugged. "I have a feeling you're not up to getting out on the town just yet," he paused to take a drink from his coffee cup. "But I need to go grocery shopping."

"I can help you," Reid perked up, ignoring the twist in his gut. "I actually need to pick up a few things, too."

Morgan smiled and took another gulp of his coffee. "Alright. Let's get ready and then we can head out."

Reid got up and stretched his arms over his head and dropped them quickly when he saw Morgan's eyes land on the expanse of skin that showed where the t-shirt had ridden up. Reid said, "Okay," and grabbed the pillow that had fallen on the floor and tossed it back on the bed.

Morgan finished off his coffee and got up and to go to the kitchen. "You want some pizza? There's still a ton leftover," he called over his shoulder. Reid walked out to the kitchen to see Morgan's head buried in the fridge. He heard Reid approach and looked up over the door, piece of pizza hanging precariously from his mouth. He held up another piece to Reid as an offering.

Reid rolled his eyes and grabbed the cold piece of pizza, munching on it as he walked back to the bedroom. "You have more clothes I can borrow?" he asked around a mouthful of ham and pineapple. His stomach made a rumbling sound as Reid swallowed another mouthful. "Morgan?"

"Yeah." Reid jumped a little when Morgan appeared behind him. He went over to the Chester drawers by the window and pulled out a pair of worn jeans and tossed them at Reid, who barely caught them and ended up digging his thumb into the cold pizza sauce. Morgan gave him a small, "Oops," then went over to the closet and pulled out a couple of things that Reid couldn't see. He turned around and then tossed a black shirt and a leather belt on the bed.

"They're bigger than the other stuff I gave you," Morgan told him, "but I think they should do the trick. I already took my shower so I just have to change my clothes."

"Yeah," Reid nodded as he threw the pants out on the bed to see their size. They looked a bit too large but nothing the belt couldn't handle. "I'll only take a couple minutes."

"Don't rush yourself," Morgan said quickly. "I'm in no hurry to look at boxes of cereal."

Reid finished his pizza and then went to take a shower, gathering up the clothes in his arms. It was a novel experience, shutting himself all alone in a little room to shower; even though there was no one else around, it was still reassuring to know Morgan was just outside. The hot water felt really good on his pale skin, but Reid rushed through washing up and got out. He yanked the clothes, damp from the steam, and then took his towel and swiped a line across the mirror to see how they looked.

The jeans hung low on his hips given he hasn't put on the belt yet, but they ended at pretty much the perfect length at his heel. The t-shirt was plain black and was made of soft cotton that had Reid thinking of all the possible things Morgan could have been doing while wearing it. Maybe he was taking a jog, using those firm leg muscles that Reid was _not_ totally checking out yesterday. Or maybe he was sleeping in it, taking into good use the comfortable material. Whatever Morgan was wearing the shirt for last, the underlying thought was that this was Morgan's shirt, and that thought yet again sent a pleasant shiver up Reid's spine.

Reid knew he wasn't totally straight, but he wasn't exactly gay either- maybe he lies somewhere under the label of bisexual. He's never made any type of pass towards a guy but it's not like he couldn't admire good looking people, right? And Morgan _definitely_counts as a good looking person. It'd be a shame on him if he didn't take advantage of the little snippets of dark skin and rippling muscles under thin shirts.

But that was it. He was merely admiring good-_amazing_- human flesh and bones. He and Morgan have been working together for eight years now and he really wanted to continue working with him. Morgan's just the all-around best friend he didn't have for a big part of his life. Now what kind of person would Reid be if he ruined the best friendship he's ever had with just one sentence.

Plus Morgan's totally straight. Or, at least he thinks he is. Those little moments between the two of them where eyes lingered a bit too long and touches ghosted pasted being friendly had Reid feeling strange inside. Uncertain.

He pulled the leather belt through the belt loops and hooked it into the farthest hole. He opened the door again so he could hear the sound of the TV in the living room. Reid shaved with steady hands and brushed his teeth with the razor and toothbrush he found under the sink. His hair was dripping down his neck, turning cool in the colder air from outside the bathroom, and Reid shivered and dried it some more with his towel before he left the bathroom. Morgan was scowling down at his cell phone and a feeling of dread settled in Reid's stomach.

"Please don't tell me that's a case," he said.

"It's not," Morgan replied without looking up from his phone. He clicked it off and then stood from the couch, stuffing the cell into his back pocket, smiling like he wasn't looking at his phone like he wanted to throw it out the window a moment ago. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Oh, yeah. Lemme just get my keys and then we can be on our way."

* * *

"I didn't even think it was possible for someone to need that much Cocoa Puffs," Reid said in awe.

Morgan chuckled and poked at the ten-pound bag of cereal sitting on the bottom shelf with his foot. "You obviously came from a small family. I remember this one time I was working a case back in my street cop days, God, I don't think I've ever seen anybody fit that many people into one house. I swear, they would use one of these bags a week."

Reid raised his brows, pushing the shopping cart along the aisle. "I don't suppose you ate ten-pounds bags of cereal when you were a kid."

"Nah. It was more like... seven pounds," Morgan joked, his eyes lighting up. "My dad used to be addicted to Frosted Flakes. He would have a bowl in the morning when he woke up and one before he went to bed."

Reid made a little 'huh' noise. "We never had cereal when I was a kid. My dad, he, uh, was always on some kind of health kick, you know, keeping up the tough lawyer look. And my mom works really good with patterns so when they separated, she was already so used to not buying cereal that I didn't want to suddenly change that." He picked a box of macaroni off of the shelf and put it into the buggie.

"You don't talk about him much. Your dad," Morgan noted after a beat of silence.

Reid didn't even want to touch that comment with a ten foot stick.

The only sounds were the squeaking of the buggie wheels and a kid yelling in the opposite aisle for a few moments before Morgan asked, "Chunky or smooth?" and it was so out of context, Reid stopped in his tracks to stare at him. Morgan had an amused look on his face and gestured to the jars of peanut butter lined up on the shelf and repeated, "Chunky or smooth?"

"Oh," Reid blinked, "I, uh... I don't eat peanut butter."

"What _do _you eat?" Morgan asked, exasperated.

"Macaroni?" He gave a pointed look to the box he just put in the shopping cart.

Morgan scoffed. "No wonder you're so skinny! Do you live off of macaroni or what?"

"No. I just haven't finished getting what I want."

"Uh-huh."

"Seriously!"

Morgan laughed. "Alright, Pretty Boy, I bet you can't get fifty bucks worth of groceries of things you'll eat."

"Oh, you're on," Reid grinned.

After another half hour, Reid had his part of the cart filled with cans of soup, frozen dinners, frozen vegetables, crackers, frozen pizzas, trail mix, and two one-gallon jugs of sweet tea. Morgan had just about doubled that amount in meats, cheeses, vegetables, and fruits on his side of the cart.

"I think I got more," Morgan deadpans while in the check-out line.

"Gee, really?" Reid rolled his eyes. "Doesn't matter, though. I definitely got more than fifty dollars worth."

Morgan snorted and surveyed what Reid had on his side. "Man, do you even eat meat?"

"Yeah, look," Reid reached down and picked up one of the frozen dinners. "This one has a chicken in it."

Morgan shook his head with an amused expression and started stacking his packages of steaks onto the conveyor to check-out. "You know, it's probably a miracle you're not huge. That crap you're eating can't be good for you."

"Gifted metabolism," Reid muttered and helped Morgan put up the rest of his groceries.

"That'll be $87.59," the cashier said, popping her chewing gum, her chemically straight blonde hair falling in her eyes.

Morgan turned and gave Reid a superior look to which Reid rolled his eyes to. "Wow," he said, "you're going to go broke quicker than I am. That's amazing."

"I still don't think you got over fifty," Morgan said.

"Just watch."

He piled up his things- frozen things first and then canned goods and then everything else- and watched as the cashier ringed the items up. He was totally going to get over fifty dollars, no doubt about it.

"$59.97," the cashier said once everything was scanned.

"Ha!" he exclaimed.

He turned to Morgan, grinning from ear-to-ear with a triumph that really didn't mean anything. And Morgan grinned back, totally uncaring that he lost.

"It's not like we bet actual money," Morgan said without any real force behind the words.

"You're just mad that you lost," he teased.

"$59.97," the cashier repeated impatiently.

Reid smothered his smiled and quickly paid the lady.

He didn't even realize he made it though a whole shopping trip without freaking out until they were almost home.


End file.
